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Publisher Description
A poignant and
incandescent debut that explores the bonds of community and what it
really means to change
Chinelo—or Nelo, as her best friend, Kate, calls her—is all
about her neighbourhood, Ginger East. She loves its chill vibe, its ride-or-die
sense of community and the memories she has of growing up there. Ginger East
isn’t what it used to be, though. After a deadly incident at the local arcade,
most of Nelo’s friends, except for Kate, have moved away. But as long as the
two girls have each other, Nelo’s good.
Then Kate’s parents’ corner store is vandalized, leaving
Nelo shaken to her core. The police and the media are quick to point fingers,
and soon more of the outside world descends upon Ginger East with promises to “fix
the neighbourhood.” Suddenly, Nelo finds herself in the middle of a drama that
is unfolding on a national scale.
Worse yet, Kate has begun acting strange. She’s pushing Nelo
away at the exact time they need each other most. Nelo’s entire world is
morphing into something she hates, and she must figure out how to get things
back on track or risk losing everything—and everyone—she loves.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Chinelo "Nelo" Agu, 16, who is Nigerian Canadian, is content with life in her hometown of Ginger East, in the greater Toronto area. She has a fierce love for her home, despite a shooting years ago that made headlines and cast the town in an unflattering light ("That place is no good for children. It's not a good place to grow up"). Though many of her friends moved away, Chinelo still has her best friend, Kate Tran, a Vietnamese Canadian girl whose parents own a popular store in town. But when the store is vandalized, and developers move in to persuade the residents of Ginger East to sell their properties, Chinelo knows it's up to her ("because my mind, my body, is so rooted in Ginger East") to defend her city from the outsiders who seek to gentrify it: "I swear people who don't know anything about what it's like to live here will come in, do whatever they want, and then leave, pretending they did us any favors—pretending we need them." Chinelo's unwavering devotion and hope for her hometown drive this debut; Onomé delves into the meaning of home and the negative impacts of redevelopment. While Chinelo's outright denial of any problems in Ginger East becomes repetitive, this novel explains what gentrification can mean to existing communities, beneath its promises of prosperity. Ages 12–up.
